Melt freeze melt freeze ....

Today was another freezing day, although much of the snow had melted a few days ago. In this scene, you see a school in the background, with pine trees and skateboard ramps in the middle ground. I used a little bit of salt in the water, I have two waters with me, one fresh one salt, and mix them as needed. Still looking forward to spring. 

Melt freeze trees, watercolour 6 x 7.5" cold press, March 2026

Sitting on the same bench, looking towards the Sports Complex, I did this painting of an interesting pair of pine trees with beds of pine needles on the ground. Its the closest thing to a forest that we have in NDG. The city planted some more trees and a small wetlands area on the corner of the park, which is a cool idea and I will make some painting when it fills in a bit. Overall, it was a good winter with lots of paintings, including some from Brazil! 

Pine trees Sports complex, watercolour 6 x 7.5" cold press, March 2026 

Colour Compost

We are big fans of composting, in fact I have a composter on the tiny bit of grass that we call a backyard and use it regularly. By now, its heaped with frozen vegetable and fruit peelings, no meat because that attracts rats and mice. We put the meat and egg shells into a separate bag for the City compost service to pick up. Recently I composted one of my old paintings to see what would happen and sure enough, the 100% rag fiber disintegrated and got absorbed into the soil. So one day when I need to decide what to do with my collection, I know what to do! This painting was a palette cleanser with a compost-inspired colour scheme hence the name. Its on a watercolour paper stock (not cotton fiber) but it would probably still compost just fine. I was keen on painting outside the last few days but with howling winds and frigid chill I decided to wait it out. 

Colour Compost, watercolour 9 x 12" watercolour paper, March 2026 

Gas Price

The gas price was well over $1.80 which is a lot in Montreal, its going to cost more to fill up my bicycle. But seriously, its all due somehow to the events in the middle east. In the painting, I show a gas station sign, over on Cavendish and Somerled, with my initials and the year instead of a price. In the background is an eerie glow from the gas station lights, and a green light on the left to provide contrast. The darn paint would just not dry fast enough, so there was some smudging here and there but it makes for quite a striking effect. 

Gas Price, watercolour 6 x 7.5" cold press, March 2026 

Sparkle flowers

 

This painting was at my Parents' place for a long time, now its been up on our fridge for awhile. Cilei really likes it, so I thought to put a scan up on the blog. The sparkle was done by tossing salt crystals in while the paint was semi-moist, which sucks up the water leaving a starburst effect. I made a series of such paintings but with dark black outlines, this one was a bit softer. It was done around 1999 to my recollection, my idea was to bring these to an art show in a park and sell some, but I never did make any sales that way. I sold several abstract paintings through the art gallery, and the art commune shop in London Ontario. 

Sparkle flowers, watercolour 4 x 6" cold press, 1999

Fresh layer of snow, under the weather

I bought a cheap DVD player to take advantage of the DVD collection they have at the local Cultural Center and Library. Lots of Zombies so far! Today I was feeling a little under the weather on the tail end of a cold, but got out there, and also made a few paintings while it snowed. I found a sheltered spot to stand across the street under the front overhang of the Sports Complex. With snow overhead you could say I was under the weather. Get it? I was sick, and standing under the snow, under the weather times two. To make this painting, I had to paint around all the snow highlights. It was tricky brushwork but at least I can wear my wool mitts instead of deerskin gauntlets which offered a bit more dexterity. 

Snow covered trees Cultural Center, watercolour 6 x 7.5" cold press, March 2026 

You also get a sense of the incredible facilities we are lucky to have on this former location which was Benny Farm. This scene shows a medical center, they call them CLSC, with snow-covered pine trees in the foreground. Up in the background are the two massive apartment buildings on Sherbrooke, quite a few of my graduate students have rented apartments there as they live in Montreal. Unfortunately it will be difficult to bring in more international graduate students this year, although a Canadian graduate student applied and might get an admission offer soon. In other news, I am close to making a website for my immunology research laboratory, but no promises on when it will happen! 

Medical Center snow covered pine trees, watercolour 6 x 7.5" cold press, March 2026 

 

Warm axons map

Its probably not the oddest title I've given a painting but probably close. After a lot of winter painting I cleaned the palette with a small brush, using the excess paint to make a few abstracts. I call these palette cleansers. Using different colours and making shapes is also a different experience compared to painting on location. On location, I try to represent the scene, while the abstracts are pure imagination. The idea was to create a maze-like tapestry, like a map of brain cells or axons. I liked the sound of 'warm axons', the way the two words blurr together. 

Warm axons map, watercolour 9 x 12" watercolour paper, March 2026 

Le Pois Penché and Paix Park

Along Maisonneuve there is a restaurant called Le Pois Penché, or the 'Leaning Pea' whatever that means, it has a ritzy looking France-style facade and red awning. The main reason to do this painting were the orange construction pylons. Our Mayor wants to rid downtown Montreal of orange cones so they are an endangered species now. I checked on google and this restaurant averages $100 per person, although it has 4.5 stars so it must be good. That's $22.22 per star, plus tax and tip. 

Le Pois Penché, watercolour 6 x 7.5" cold press, March 2026 

Paix park is down on Clark street near China Town, its not somewhere I would hang out but over the years I have done a few paintings of it, like in this blog which shows the interlocking brick lined with grass. I never  knew there was a massive dome structure in the background because the trees always block the view in summer, and you can't see the dome from other angles. I happen to be walking with my bike north on Clark and saw it. No idea what it is, tried google but no luck. The shops around it are various retail and ... other types of establishments I wont mention here. Guess it used to be a planetarium or disco club maybe. 

Paix park with dome, watercolour 6 x 7.5" cold press, March 2026